Obama needs to channel an inner John Howard: Columnist Derrick Z. Jackson explains why the president must take action similar to the former prime minister of Australia who took tough action after a gunman massacred 35 people in that country in 1996.

Leading on guns: Warren in front of the issue: Columnist Scot Lehigh writes about how Senator Elizabeth Warren said, long before last week's mass shooting, that she'd fight much more aggressively for a federal assault weapons ban.

GOP spurns Boehner tax bill: Last night, House Speaker John Boehner canceled a planned vote on a bill to extend income tax cuts for most Americans while increasing rates for millionaires. More from Washington Bureau chief Christopher Rowland and Washington reporter Bobby Caina Calvan.